


Mother's Comfort

by toushindai (WallofIllusion)



Category: Hades (Video Game 2018)
Genre: Character Study, Extended Scene, Gen, Mention of past Megaera/Zagreus
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-26
Updated: 2020-02-26
Packaged: 2021-02-27 22:15:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,433
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22903018
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WallofIllusion/pseuds/toushindai
Summary: Megaera would find her place in the House even without Nyx’s guidance, but to reassure her when she falters under Hades’ graceless pressure is not a task Nyx despises.
Relationships: Nyx & Megaera (Hades Video Game)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 59





	Mother's Comfort

**Author's Note:**

> An expansion of one of the conversations between Megaera and Nyx that Zagreus overheard. ~~aaagh I know there's got to be a huge influx of Nyx content coming _soon_ and I should _wait_ but I've gotten so damn antsy. So antsy. So we are making some assumptions, fleshing out some conversations, and crossing all available fingers and toes that in this respect, even if in no others, Nyx is approximately the way she appears to be so far.~~
> 
> 5/10/20: Yep! I had to rewrite it. File under "things that are my own fault."

Once again, Hades is berating Megaera. Nyx can hear his ranting through the stone walls that set her space apart from the main hall as he scolds the eldest Fury for falling to Zagreus and questions both her dedication and her ability. He is frustrated not specifically with Megaera but with his own impotence against Zagreus’s desire to escape—but Megaera will not separate his general ire from that pointed at her specifically, and the assignment itself is distressing enough for her. Nyx would prefer that Hades did not insist upon making it worse. He has often exhibited this tendency, to take his dissatisfaction and inflict it on those who toil beneath his yoke; he believes, wrongly, that this forcefulness is what keeps the House running in order. If only he would not behave in such a manner, perhaps his son would not be so justifiably determined to leave.

For now, he finishes his scolding with a quieter affirmation that he trusts Megaera to do what is necessary: half reassurance and half threat. Then there is silence from the great hall. It is possible that Megaera will retreat to the lounge to lick her wounds over a drink, but Nyx suspects that instead—

Yes.

Here she is, standing at the entrance of Nyx’s office, rigid and tense.

“Nyx,” she says, her voice tight. “If you have the time, may I visit with you, for a minute?”

She does not need to ask, but she does for formality’s sake. Nyx sends her a serene smile. “Of course, daughter,” she says. “You know that you are always welcome in my presence.”

“Despite the circumstances,” Megaera mutters to herself. She practically throws herself into the chair most shielded from the sight of the east hall, pulling her knees up to her chest and wrapping her wing tight around herself. Nyx silently averts her attention from the way her breath hitches as she fights tears. It is the kindest thing she can do for her daughter. If Megaera wants to speak, she assuredly will.

At last, Megaera says, “I don’t even want this job.”

It is an incomplete thought, and her forceful tone does not conceal the tremble in her voice. Nyx waits. Megaera uncoils herself and stands to pace tightly across the small space. “I cannot abide the way Lord Hades keeps changing my assignment. First he told me to marry his son but insisted that I not develop affection or sympathy for him. Then it was somehow my fault that Zagreus lost patience with that and refused to see me any longer—as if that were what I wanted out of it all, as if I drove him away on purpose! And that—isn’t even my point, I…”

Megaera falters, perhaps surprised at the vehemence with which the whole tale has burst from her. It is no surprise to Nyx. She had watched the relationship gain its footing and then she had watched it dissolve, and the suffering it had inflicted on both of them had pained Nyx’s heart as well. It is a suffering that Megaera has refused to feel at length, but of course these new circumstances that force her to face Zagreus over and over would bring it to the forefront again.

But Megaera will not want to know just how visible her pain is. And so Nyx does not speak of the pain specifically, for fear that to call attention to it would drive Megaera away from facing it, as she must. Instead, she says, “Does your relationship with Zagreus complicate your latest assignment, my daughter?”

Megaera gives an aggravated sigh and scrubs her face with her hands. “I—it isn’t even a matter of everything with Zagreus. It isn’t about the fact that Lord Hades wants me to kill the man he originally ordered me to marry.” (It seems she has convinced herself this is the truth, though it is clearly false.) “Nyx, I have so much work to do right now. It was bad enough when Tis and Alecto got called away, and now I have to constantly drop everything I’m doing to put Zagreus down. And I’m doing all that I can, but I think… he’s surpassed me. For good.”

She sags, her pride clearly wounded. And before Nyx can find words that might guide her to break free of the pressure that stifles her, she speaks again. “What is Lord Hades thinking, Nyx? I feel like he’s setting me up to fail, tasking me with impossible assignments and then despising me for not completing them. What am I supposed to do?”

Nyx looks at her daughter with love’s shadow cast long in her heart. Megaera’s determination and certainty have often served her well, leading her to be exactly the person she wishes to be, but on the occasions that they lead her astray she is unequipped to face that truth. Although the questions that she asks now are not the ones that will bring her peace, she knows no better ones. Nyx stands and reaches for her.

“Have faith that he does not wish for your failure, daughter,” she says, taking Megaera’s hands in hers. “Your martial skill is the best of anyone in the House, surpassing even Achilles—and so, who else is there to be depended on? You are a trusted overseer, Megaera. Your station is no accident and there is no one better fit for what you do.”

It is the language that Megaera speaks best, that of responsibility and dependability, and Nyx sees that it fortifies her. But she sees, too, that it locks the Fury’s heart further away. And she cannot let that stand. She holds fast to her daughter’s hands and speaks seriously. “I urge you to look inwardly. How you approach your work is vital to the end result.”

She would find comfort in her duties if only she would acknowledge what she feels and act accordingly. Nyx is certain of this.

But the words that she intended as encouragement seem to perturb Megaera instead. It is a long moment before she speaks again, and when she does, there is a grim, comfortable resignation in her tone. “Thank you for the advice, Nyx. I don’t know what I’d do without you. Or what this House would be if not for you.”

Nyx inclines her head in acceptance of Megaera’s gratitude. “We all do that which is within our power,” she says. Megaera would find her place in the House even without Nyx’s guidance, but to reassure her when she falters under Hades’ graceless pressure is not a task Nyx despises.

Megaera squeezes her hands. “Thank you again, Nyx,” she says. “Now, I think I’d better take my chance to rest while I can get it. Zag will be back soon enough, and then I’ll need to head out again.”

Nyx notices, but does not draw attention to, Megaera’s easy use of Zagreus’s nickname and the sardonic edge of fondness to her tone. Megaera tries to release her hands, but she holds onto her still. “One more thing, my daughter…”

“Hm?”

Nyx speaks in a voice that will not be denied. “If you have ever cared for the prince, it will only serve you poorly to deny that truth now.”

Megaera’s gaze wavers, and she glances away. Nyx knows that this is a complicated matter. But it will be best for Megaera if she lets herself know it, too.

“I’m not denying it, Nyx,” Megaera says at last, her voice soft. “He knows exactly how I’ve felt about him and how I feel about him now. But that isn’t relevant to what either of us must do. And it can’t change the fact that we are opposed, now.” She meets Nyx’s eyes, guilty. “I’m sorry you have to see us like this.”

“Do not apologize, daughter. I only ask that you honor your own heart in all of this. Do not let this inspire hatred for Zagreus within you, no matter how bitter the task. I believe that he cares for you still.”

Megaera’s attempt to smile is a bit too much like a grimace. “Despite the circumstances,” she says, and sighs heavily. “I don’t think I hate him, Nyx. You needn’t fear there.”

“Then I will trust you to discern what is necessary in this time of difficulty. Take care, my daughter.”

With that, she finally lets Megaera go. She returns to her chair, and the House’s many moving parts continue in their eternal overlapping circles around her, their paths shifted ever so slightly from what they used to be.


End file.
